


Pikachu's Nightmare

by orphan_account



Category: Pocket Monsters | Pokemon (Anime), Pocket Monsters | Pokemon (Main Video Game Series), Pocket Monsters | Pokemon - All Media Types
Genre: Dark Comedy, Dreams, F/M, Hallucinations, Neoshipping, RocketShipping - Freeform, Sickfic, Team Rocket - Freeform, krazyshipping
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2018-06-20
Updated: 2018-06-21
Packaged: 2019-05-25 20:51:50
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 2
Words: 9,771
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/14985344
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/orphan_account/pseuds/orphan_account
Summary: A "what if" Ash gets turned into a Pokemon and has to depend on the one Pokemon he has trouble trusting.





	1. Chapter 1

**Author's Note:**

> Spoiler: This story takes place in a character's dream.
> 
> Trigger warnings may still apply, though 
> 
> Krazyshipping implied  
> Sickfic, sort of, Ash gets turned into a weak Pokemon and has to rely on Team Rocket's Meowth for help, comfort, and assistance getting back to normal.  
> Shared dreaming / hallucinating.
> 
> Disclaimer: Pokemon belongs to Nintendo, the Pokemon Company, and whoever else legally owns the rights to it.

As Ash slumbered, a shadow moved across his face.

Pikachu made a little "chaa" noise as it yawned.

"Huh? Not right now, Pikachu?" Ash said sleepily as he turned over and continued snoring.

"Misdreavus..." the Pokemon whispered as it descended to the lower floor of the cabin.

Jessie, James, and Meowth were trying to get some needed shut eye in the basement of the cabin. They snuck in when they thought no one was looking.

"Mis...drea...vus..." the Pokemon whispered as it touched Meowth's cheek.

"Jimmy, your hands are cold..." Meowth said in his sleep.

"Not now, Meowth..." Jessie said in annoyance.

"Ooh! Jessie, stop hogging the blankets..."

James said as he shivered.

___________________________________________________________

Ash awoke to a slightly hazier view of the world than normal. He stretched and rubbed his eyes until things sort of came back into focus.

"Well, Pikachu, time to start our day!" The little yellow electric mouse that was perched on his shoulder let out a happy, "Pika Pi."

Ash stepped outside to the foggy landscape. No sooner had he done so did he feel something around his feet. It was a Spinarak web! Excitedly, Ash pulled his foot back and fell to the ground. Somewhere far away, he heard something metal close and Pikachu scream. At the end of Pikachu's yowl, Ash heard familiar evil laughter.

"Ha ha ha ha!" The voices said.

Suddenly, a haze of white smoke filled the area.

Ash started coughing and then he noticed he couldn't breathe. Wearily, he dropped to his knees.

"To infect the world with devastation!"

"To blight all peoples in every nation!"

"To denounce the goodness of truth and love!"

"To extend our wrath to the stars above!"

"Cassidy!"

"Butch"

"Team Rocket circling Earth day and night!"

"Surrender to us now or you will surely lose the fight!"

"Raticate!"

 _Oh no! Team Rocket! Butch and Cassidy, need to escape._ Ash thought. He could barely move, though, and he was already struggling to keep his eyes open.

"Spinarak, wrap up this package!" Cassidy said. 

"Jumpluf, sleep powder!" Butch said. 

Ash crouched down low, tried not to breathe and used his remaining strength to look up. 

Footsteps approached him in the grass. 

"You're...not...getting...Pikachu," Ash groaned weakly. 

"Pikachu?" Cassidy asked with a puzzled look.

"It sounds familiar..." Cassidy said to herself.  

Cassidy put her finger to her chin and posed as if she was thinking about something, then she raised her finger in the air dramatically. 

"Oh! You must have us confused with that other group!" Cassidy finally said with a forced chuckle. 

"We have much better plans than old Jess and what's his name," Butch said. 

"Yep. You'll be pleased to know that you will finally be relieved of your Pokemon..." Cassidy said. 

"At long last..." Butch said as Raticate walked up him and stuck its long tail in Ash's face. 

Ash yawned from his place still on the ground. He tried to breath or speak, but nothing came out.  

"I guess we should at least explain a little of what's going on," Cassidy said. 

"See, that fog you walked into is peppered with stun spore," Butch said. 

"You can't see, but we're wearing special masks to protect ourselves," Cassidy said. 

"It's always more efficient to immobilize the trainer first. That way, you can't fight back if we try to take anything from you," Butch said. 

"That's good old Pokemon thievery 101, but you've been dealing with amateurs for so long, we thought we would run it by you anyway," Butch said as they playfully kicked Ash with their boots. 

Butch and Cassidy laughed at Ash's helpless state. Ash groaned and then yawned. He tried to move his hands, but they just wouldn't cooperate. 

"...don't fight it; just go to sleep..." Cassidy knelt down and whispered in his ear. 

Ash did everything he could to stay awake, but eventually the stun spore and sleep powder got to him and he collapsed with a groan. 

Cassidy nudged him again with her high-heeled boot, and then she kicked him softly, then harder. 

"He's out," she said. 

Butch looked around. 

"Pick up all of the Pokemon that were affected by the stun spore, and put them in the truck," Butch instructed.

________________________________________________

Meowth heard the commotion upstairs and decided to investigate.  

He rubbed his eyes to make sure he was seeing things correctly. 

Hundreds of Pokemon were lying motionless on the ground, and people in Team Rocket uniforms were walking around and picking them up. 

Meowth rushed to the clearing to see what this was about. As soon as his feet hit the clearing, though, he stopped and took a good look at the fine granules on the ground. Shocked, he turned back. 

"Stun spore!" Meowth said, as he ran back to safety, hoping he was unaffected. 

On his way back to camp, he came across something in the grass. It looked like someone had discarded a complete Pokemon trainer's uniform. Upon further inspection, Meowth found that it was a person. 

"Dat's da twoirp," Meowth whispered as he looked at the unconscious Ash. 

The body let out a groan. 

"Is he still conscious?" Cassidy asked. 

Meowth quickly hid himself from view but stayed to watch the scene. 

It was Butch and Cassidy, rival Team Rocket members. They were loading all of the fainted Pokemon into a large black van. 

"What are we going to do with the boy?" Butch asked. 

"Normally I would say leave him, but he's caused us enough problems, hasn't he?" Cassidy asked. 

A man in a white lab coat approached from a truck that was parked outside; he was wearing a deranged look and a fiendish hungry grin. 

Butch and Cassidy stopped and flashed him a nervous smile. 

"Hi, Dr. Nambla," they said in unison. 

"Put him in my truck; I know of an experiment I want to do," the scientist said flatly. 

"Dr. Nambla, are you sure?" Butch asked, a little alarmed. 

"What are you worried about? You want to get rid of him, don't you?" Cassidy asked Butch. 

"Yeah, but I..." Butch leaned over and whispered to Cassidy, "I'm not sure I trust Dr. Nambla's experiments; for all of the trouble this kid has caused us, he's still just a young boy, you know. I don't know if even he deserves that level of torture..." 

Meowth's finely tuned ears barely picked up the conversation. 

Cassidy rolled her eyes and patted Butch on the cheek.

"But it's for the good of science..." Cassidy cooed with an evil smile as she walked over to Dr. Nambla. 

Minutes later, Meowth saw them hoist Ash into the truck along with the fainted Pokemon and Pikachu. 

The scratch cat was on the fence on what to do. He heard the engine running and debated with himself whether or not to get involved. Curiosity and maybe a little bit of concern was eating away at him, though. Without giving it much more thought, Meowth silently slipped into the truck and waited for it to take off. 

 _I don't like Ash or Pikachu, but something's up._ Meowth thought.  _I wish I had time to warn Jessie and James._

Meowth slipped behind a cage stuffed with fainted Pokemon undetected and continued to watch the scene. 

"Biff, are we just going to leave the Pokemon lying in this cage? What if they wake up?" Cassidy asked. 

"It's 'Butch!' Oh! I almost...why didn't I do this before we left?" Butch said in a grumble as he headed to another part of the van.

Cassidy let out a sigh. 

In a few minutes, Butch returned with a box full of green Poke Balls. 

Cassidy eyed them curiously. 

"Where did you get those?" Cassidy asked. 

"We have an ally in Fuscha City at the Safari zone," Butch answered. 

Cassidy picked up one of the balls and enlarged it. 

"The catch rate can be a little low, but since the Pokemon are already fainted, this should be all we need..." Butch said. 

"I hope so..." Cassidy said. 

Suddenly, Butch turned to Cassidy in a rage. 

"Look! We already managed to lose Moltres and Lugia; make yourself useful, or the boss might start seeing us like those lunatics in white," Butch snarled. 

Cassidy slapped him in the face. 

"Don't...talk to me like that!" she demanded eyes narrowing into a dangerous glare. 

She eyed the fainted Pokemon. 

"Besides, you worry too much; we ended up losing a couple of legendary Pokemon, but the boss himself said that it was a hard mission. Failure, in moderation, is to be expected from any profession," Cassidy said. 

"I guess you're right. At least we don't fail all of the time, like Tweedle Dee and Tweedle Dumber..." Butch said. 

"No, no, and we're still in good standing with everyone at headquarters...unlike Jessie Jess and her team..." Cassidy said. 

She crossed over to a cage stacked with fainted Pokemon and opened it. 

"In fact, Matori's invited us to another little get together with some higher ranking buddies...it's at a fancy restaurant, but I think I can convince Wendy to put it on Jessie's tab...they already owe the boss so much already; he won't notice," Cassidy said. 

"Is the boss going to be there?" Butch asked. 

"hmm, hmm," Cassidy said gently while slowly nodding her head.

"...and Proton and Petrel...we haven't fallen from grace yet."

She leaned in and gave Butch a kiss. 

Meowth made a face from his hiding place. 

"Did you hear something?" Cassidy asked. 

"Quit daydreaming, and let's get these Pokemon in the balls before they wake up and we blow another mission," Butch said. 

Cassidy picked up a fainted Rockruff, tapped its nose to the button on the Poke Ball and watched as the little creature was sucked in. The Poke Ball moved for a few seconds, and then the light went off, indicating its capture. 

With that, Butch and Cassidy proceeded to repeat the process with the hundreds of Pokemon they captured. As the pile of Pokemon got smaller, Meowth had to shift around to keep from being spotted. 

"I know I heard something this time..." Cassidy said. 

"Work faster. Some of these things might be waking up," Butch warned. 

While they were preoccupied, Meowth scurried to find a better hiding place and avoid the frenzied capture fest. Butch and Cassidy were throwing Poke Balls like mad, and fainted Pokemon were disappearing left and right. 

Meowth finally found his way in between Pikachu's cage and a box of Poke Balls. 

"That's it. I know I heard something..." Butch said. 

"It's probably just a wild Pokemon. We'll investigate later. Let's finish this first," Cassidy said. 

Butch let out a sigh and rubbed his gloved hands on to each other, dusting them off. 

"That's the last of them," Butch said. 

Cassidy walked over to the cage and shook it lightly. 

Meowth's tail was sticking out from his hiding place. 

Swiftly, Cassidy grabbed it. 

"Not quite. Just look what I found..." Cassidy said with a deceptive sweetness in her tone. 

 

The scratch cat came out with his claws barred. He quickly gave Cassidy fury swipes across her face. 

She dropped the cat Pokemon in shock. 

"Hey! What's the big idea?" the cat Pokemon protested. 

Realizing he blew his cover, he covered his mouth with his paw. 

"I thought something seemed a bit suspicious. Well, if it isn't our old friends' little pet..." Cassidy cooed as she picked him up by his scruff. 

"Come to spy on us?" Cassidy asked. 

"I ain't nobody's pet! I'm a certified member a Team Rocket!" Meowth snarled. 

"Could've fooled me," Cassidy said with a chuckle as she readied a Poke Ball. 

"You look like a Pokemon..." Cassidy said. 

"...and Pokemon belong in..." Butch said as he picked up a green Poke Ball and enlarged it. 

"Poke Balls!" Butch and Cassidy said in unison as they aimed at Meowth. 

Meowth heard the ring of evil laughter as he was pelted with green Safari balls. The cat Pokemon batted them away with his paw, hoping that none of them successfully hit. 

It worked for about two minutes, then his tail was struck by a ball from behind before he could bat it away. Meowth felt himself being pulled into the Poke Ball. He yelped as he saw himself transform from a tangible Pokemon into a flash of red light energy. 

Cassidy and Butch stopped and stared at the Safari ball. It shook once, then twice, then...

Meowth burst out of the ball, claws bared. He looked at Butch and snarled. Then, he suddenly felt someone grab him from behind. 

"Time out, kitty..." Cassidy said as she picked up the cat Pokemon and plopped him into a small cage. 

"...and you would have made such a wonderful addition to our team, too..." Cassidy said in mock pity. 

"Let me outta here! Da boss is gonna hear about dis!" Meowth growled, claws still bared. 

"We have a lot we could tell him ourselves," Butch said. 

"Like how your idiot friends sent you to spy on us..." Cassidy said. 

"...or how they can't seem to do anything of their missions right, even though they're given the strongest Pokemon and the best machines..." Butch said. 

"Face it, your little friends are an embarrassment to Team Rocket. They don't even deserve to be members..." Cassidy said. 

Meowth growled and tried to scratch Butch and Cassidy through the cage. 

"You take dat back!" the cat Pokemon growled. 

"Stop playing with the Pokemon and get over here!" Dr. Nambla demanded, his voice a low dangerous growl. 

Butch and Cassidy immediately stopped what they were doing and walked over to Dr. Nambla. 

"Hey, come back here, you cowards!" Meowth yelled. 

Butch gave a slight smile, "Oh, I almost forgot," Butch said as he pulled something from a box. 

Meowth's eyes sparkled as he was handed the ball of yarn. 

"For you, Meowth...hope there's no hard feelings..."  

The cat Pokemon couldn't resist his instincts; he reached for the ball of yarn and started bouncing it in the air. Butch walked away, and Meowth continued to happily play with his ball of yarn as he half listened to the humans' conversation.

"We're almost at the lab. Prepare the boy. Make sure he doesn't have any of his Pokemon to interrupt the experiment," Dr. Nambla instructed. 

Meowth put the yarn to his mouth in carefree elation; it tasted funny. 

The truck came to a stop, and Meowth heard the sound of rustling cages, cargo being unloaded. 

There was also the sound of zipping and snapping, like someone being fastened to a stretcher. 

The cat Pokemon felt his own cage moving. His stomach churned, and he felt lightheaded.

"Meow?" Meowth groaned. 

At this point, he could barely keep his eyes open. As Meowth's cage was carried to the light of day, everything went black. 

* * *

 

Ash awoke strapped to a table in something that looked like a hospital examination room. He tried to look around. There was a huge mirror to his left and a large light shining in his eyes above. The situation was unfamiliar. 

"Oh...where am I?" Ash asked, groaning at the end. 

There was no answer. He tried to move to look around and found the uncomfortable firm resistance of restraints. As he continued to adjust to his surroundings, he noticed a huger machine, like an MRI scanner, directly in front of him. 

_What's that? It looks like some kind of giant laser. Am I moving?_

Someone somewhere turned the machine on, and the bed he was on started slowly creeping toward the pink light the machine was giving off. 

* * *

 

Pikachu started waking up. It noticed its surroundings gradually. 

The first thing it noticed was a giant window to some kind of hospital room. 

"Pika Pi?" Pikachu asked. 

 _Is that Ash? Is he okay?_ Pikachu thought. 

Pikachu noticed people in white lab coats standing in front of some kind of machine. The little mouse Pokemon sniffed the air and immediately caught whiff of something that made his cheeks flicker with electricity. 

_Smells like Team Rocket!_

The little mouse Pokemon perked its ears up. 

There was a mad scientist's evil laughter, followed by nervous chuckles. Pikachu recognized the faces of the people in the room. 

"This machine is called the Ditto; it's supposed to be able to turn people into Pokemon..." Dr. Nambla explained. 

Butch and Cassidy remained silent. 

"Of course, it's still in the testing phases..." Dr. Nambla continued. 

Cassidy looked at Butch with a worried expression on her face. 

"...but imagine the possibilities if it did work..." Nambla said with a laugh that sent chills down the other villains' spines. 

Pikachu saw smiles creep on to Butch and Cassidy's faces.  

There was the gentle sound of mechanical whirring. Pikachu watched helplessly through the window as its master slowly disappeared into the shining pink light. 

A beeping sound drew its attention to a monitor. 

_Human DNA sample 90 percent._

Pikachu watched the monitor as the percentage got lower and lower. 

_Human DNA sample 80 percent._

Butch finally decided to break the tension by speaking. 

"So...what's that?" Butch asked. 

"Weren't you listening to anything I said before?" Dr. Nambla chided. 

"This is a monitor that gives us his DNA reading. We're using Ditto essence to override his human DNA and turn it into Pokemon DNA." 

"Sounds fascinating. Will he be able to become any Pokemon after this procedure?" 

"No. If it all according to plan, we'll select one Pokemon form for him to take," Nambla explained.

"If it...doesn't go according to plan?" Cassidy asked timidly. 

"We write it off as an accident and bury the evidence..." Nabla said. 

"I think she means what will happen to the boy if there are any problems with the calibrations..." Butch said shakily. Pikachu studied his face. He looked very nervous. 

"Yeah, we kind of don't want to be charged with attempted murder..." Cassidy said with a giggle. She wore an expression that said she was half-joking. 

Dr. Nambla turned to face Butch and Cassidy and lowered his voice into a low stern growl. 

"If the experiment does not go as planned, and the subject does not come out alive, and that is a very real risk, we were the only ones here. No one is going to tell what really happened. If any evidence is found, we simply make up a story that the kid was snooping around a defense lab. That should be good enough," Dr. Nambla said. 

Pikachu was furious. Electricity shot out of its little cheek pouches and it loudly yelled in the direction of the scientists. 

_Ash! Hold on. I'll save you if I can!_

"Go calm that thing down with another round of tranquilizers!" Nambla yelled. 

"Whose idea was it to bring to the rat to the party anyway?" Cassidy asked. 

"The boy is very close to him...I thought..." Butch began. 

"Leave sentiment for lessers, agent!" someone shouted in a slur from the shadows. 

It was another person in a lab coat. He had bluish green hair and piercing eyes. As the figure walked into the room, the rest of the uniform was visible. It was white with large swaths of black trim. A small red "R" outlined in black on the pocket was visible. 

Butch and Cassidy bowed low. 

The figure walked over and kicked the two to the ground.

"I said that sentiment is for lessers...besides, we've met before..." Archer said in a low lilting voice.  

"Archer?" Butch asked questioningly once he regained his balance. 

"Welcome to the real business of Team Rocket!" Archer said with what sounded like an affected evil laugh. 

Butch straightened as Archer brushed past them. 

"Of course, I was just passing through...I don't normally oversee these toddler projects..." Archer said as he mussed Butch's hair in his hand. There was a dark dangerous tone to his voice, like he could cut your throat and laugh about it afterwards. Butch didn't dare try to stop him. 

Archer put his hand on Dr. Nambla and rubbed the back of his lab coat in a creepy unnatural way. The doctor visibly shook. 

"I trust that you're still working on our chemical weapons unit," Archer congratulated. 

The Rocket executive stopped at the cage with the Pikachu in it. 

"What's this about?" Archer asked. 

"Pika chuuuu!" Pikachu yelled as it tried to land a thunderbolt. The inside of the cage crackled, and Pikachu was hit with its own electric discharge. The exhausted and angry Pokemon fell on its back completely exhausted, still shouting expletives at the Rockets in Pokemon language. Its fur was charred and it badly needed treatment.  

"Cute..." Archer said dismissively.

Pikachu weakly looked at the Rocket admin's eyes, searching for pity. Instead, it was met with the hungry glare that should have belonged to some kind of rabid animal. Pikachu covered its face and shuddered. 

"Pikachu...Pikachu...chu!" 

 _You haven't won this. I'll still find a way to stop you._ Pikachu yelled with its last bit of strength. 

The exhausted Pokemon collapsed in his cage and weakly tried to listen to the rest of the conversation. 

"Look at the monitor; it's at zero," Dr. Nambla said. 

"Fascinating, what is this?" Archer asked while looking at the monitor. 

"They're working on a way to transport people like they do Pokemon. Quite by accident, a researcher discovered that's not all this machine is capable of. With some tweaking, it can actually merge human and Pokemon DNA...I decided to combine this machine with the experimental Ditto DNA...if this works..." Nambla began. 

"We'll be able to turn people into Pokemon!" Butch said, with mock enthusiasm. His voice was shaky, and he was visibly afraid. 

"People into Pokemon? Fascinating!" Archer growled. His tone was elated, but with a dangerous edge, and his expression remained a piercing death glare just daring anyone to defy him. 

A loud beeping sound started in the other chamber. 

"Oh, it's done!" Dr. Nambla shouted. 

The scientist opened a cabinet with a large tray. In the tray rested an assortment of liquids labeled with Pokemon names. 

"So...have we decided which one?" Nambla asked. 

Cassidy carefully plucked a bluish vial from the tray. 

"This one..." Cassidy suggested. 

"Pikachu DNA?" Butch asked. 

"Since he seems so fond of the rat, why doesn't he spend the rest of his life as one?" Cassidy asked. 

Dr. Nambla took the vial and hurried to the room where Ash was. 

He returned with a tray of pink goo. 

"What's that? Is that...is that?" Butch looked sick, like he was about to faint. Cassidy also looked a little pale. 

"The solution's been added. Now, we wait," Dr. Nambla said. 

A few seconds later, the pink solution started glowing and morphing into a familiar shape. 

"It looks like it's evolving..." Butch said. 

The shape continued to glow, and parts continued to form, until.... 

"Pichu Pichu!" 

Standing before them was a fully formed Pichu. 

"A Pokemon!" Butch and Cassidy said in unison.

"The kid's a...a...Pichu?" Cassidy asked, shakily. It was her turn to be scared now. 

"Yes, weren't you paying attention? They won't form into evolved Pokemon," Dr. Nambla said, matter-of-factly.  

"...at least not without battling experience, right..." Butch said cautiously, his words simply hanging in the air. 

"Excellent," Archer cooed. "Imagine. If this could be synthesized into a virus...instead of conquering countries all we would have to do is throw Poke Balls! The entire human race would be at our disposal! I think your boss will be happy with this..." 

Pikachu could barely believe his ears and eyes. 

"Pika Pi!" 

_Ash, it's me!_

* * *

 

"Chu? Pichu?" 

_Pikachu? How? How can I understand you?_

Ash looked down at himself to discover he was covered in yellow and black fur. The room also looked smaller. Not fully processing everything, he wandered to a nearby mirror. 

_Oh, it's a Pichu. How cute! Wait, if there's a Pichu in the mirror, that means...does that mean?_

The little Pichu let out a horrifying cry. 

"Pichu! Pichu!" 

_I'm a Pokemon! I'm a Pokemon! No, this can't really be happening!_

The experience was overwhelming. Ash looked up to see Butch and Cassidy towering over him, and he ran in terror. 

"Pika! Pika!" 

 _Watch out! You're going to run into a trap!"_ Ash heard Pikachu warn. 

"He's going to hurt himself..." Butch said. 

Cassidy pulled out a Poke Ball and threw it on the floor of the lab. Ash watched in horror as a large elephant like Pokemon appeared in front of him. 

"Drowzee, use hypnosis on the Pichu!" Cassidy commanded. 

Ash watched as the Pokemon started doing a weird dance, and Ash felt himself getting very very sleepy... 

* * *

 "Pika Pika!" Pikachu said in a frantic voice. 

_Wake up! Wake up!_

"Chu Pi?" Ash heard himself ask.

_What is it?_

Ash slowly adjusted to his surroundings. There was the feeling of hard metal under his feet. His vision gradually came back into focus and he found himself staring up at his long time buddy. 

"Uh, what's going on, buddy?" Ash asked with trepidation in his voice. Pikachu was now taller than he was. 

"Pikachu! Ash, something's very wrong..." Pikachu said. 

"You're telling me..." Ash said as he sat up and rubbed his now very furry head. His hands brushed against his long ears, and he felt his tail move as he shifted around. 

"Those bad people. They somehow turned you into a Pokemon..." Pikachu tried to explain. It was frantic. 

"But how?" Ash asked. 

"I don't know, but Team Rocket was involved..." Pikachu explained. 

"What? Those three?" Ash asked with an annoyed groan. 

"No! Not _those three,"_ Pikachu said dismissively with a little eye roll before continuing. "It was the other two, the ones with the Raticate and some scientist," Pikachu continued to explain. 

"Oh...Biff and Cassidy..." Ash groaned and instinctively reached for his belt only to grab a tuft of fur. 

Pikachu blushed. 

"Do you know where my other Pokemon are?" Ash asked, returning the embarrassed look. 

"They took me away before I could see. They knocked us both out. The ground was poisoned by a strange cloud," Pikachu said. 

"Strange cloud huh?" Ash asked. 

Pikachu nodded an affirmative and reminded itself of how weird the whole situation was. Ash was really a Pokemon. Was this really happening? 

"I've gotta find a way out of here..." Ash said. 

"Save your strength, kid...there ain't no way outta here..." a familiar voice said from a neighboring cage. 

"Meowth!" Ash said, half in annoyance, half in surprise. it was the voice he usually used to confront the Pokemon of his wrongdoings. 

Before Ash even knew what he was doing, his cheeks started sparking. It was a weird, tingling sensation on his face. 

"Ash, wait!" Pikachu said. 

"Meowth!" Meowth grumbled. 

The cat Pokemon had braced himself for an impact. 

"Pikachu!" Pikachu said in reassurance to both Ash and Meowth. 

Meowth stood back up and brushed himself off. 

"How come you always tink I'm da bad guy?" Meowth asked while staring at Pikachu. 

"Pika-chu... _because you usually are_..." Pikachu said, stating the obvious. 

"Well, not dis time..." Meowth said. 

The cat Pokemon suddenly noticed Ash. It crouched on all fours to get a better look. Meowth's piercing slit feline pupils met Ash's wide button-like eyes. Had they been in the same cage, Ash would have been very nervous. 

"Who's the kid?" Meowth asked. 

"Pika...Pichu!  _None of your business!"_ Pikachu spat, its cheeks flashing. 

"Just tryin' ta make friendly conversation..." Meowth said. 

"Yeah? Well this is no time!" Ash growled. 

"Dat's quite a mouth for such a small Pokemon...and an unusual name, too!" Meowth said as he walked off to the other side of his cell, an odd smile hanging on his lips.  

"Pika Pi, Pika Pi Pi!  _We might be able to short out the circuit on the electronic lock and get it to let us out!"_ Pikachu shouted excitedly. 

"I guess it's worth a try. Pikachu, use thunder!" 

"Okay, but first, Ash, give me your tail!" Pikachu yelled while he grabbed Ash by the tail. Pikachu easily lifted him in the air. 

Ash suddenly felt a strong electric shock go through his backside. It hurt. 

"Pichu, Pi, Pichu? _Hey! What was that for_?" Ash asked. 

Ash's question was met with a small bop on the head from Pikachu. 

"Pay attention. Try to charge yourself on my electric so that you can help me!"

Ash stared with confusion as he received yet another electric shock in his tail. 

"Ahhgh! Ow!" 

"Come on! If you're going to be an electric Pokemon, time to act like an electric Pokemon!" Pikachu said with a squeak.

 

* * *

Meowth could hardly contain himself as he watched the scene from his cell. 

_This is so unbelievable! Pikachu thinks that little runt is his master. That's insane! My little Pika pal has finally lost it!_

The cat Pokemon rolled on his back and enjoyed a brief fit of laughter at the expense of the two helpless hopelessly cute electric mice as they proceeded the most air-brained break out attempt he had ever seen. 

Just then, the cat had a weird thought. 

_I haven't seen Ash around here, come to think of it. I wonder what they did with him. I wonder if...Nah, that's insane. That...that's just a clever Pokemon playing a joke. I wonder how he got him to fall for it. Maybe I should start hanging around that kid for my con-artistry skills, eh?_

Meowth continued to watch the pair with amusement.  

Pikachu had successfully shocked "Ash" about thirty times while trying to short circuit the lock. Plus, he shocked him a ridiculous amount of times while trying to charge him up. Of course, the electric attacks didn't work for the escape attempt because the circuitry, like the cages, were resistant to electricity. The cat stared smugly at the two weak mice. Meowth made out the char marks on their fur. 

"Meowth Meow _you ain't looking so good_ ," Meowth said to Pikachu. 

"Pika...chu _tell me about it_..." Pikachu groaned as its body collapsed.

"Meowth Meowth  _I could probably help, assuming you wanted my help..."_ Meowth said. 

"Pika chu?  _Oh really, now? Is that so?"_ Pikachu asked. 

"Pichu! Pichu! Chu!  _We don't need your help, Meowth!"_ Ash yelled. 

"Meowth! Pipe down Pipsqueak. Was I even talkin ta youse?" Meowth asked. 

"Chu, Pi Chu, Chu  _When I get out of here and find my other Pokemon, they'll all be sorry!"_ Ash said with a growl. 

"Your what...your Pokemon...your...Po..ke..mon!" Meowth struggled to say as he collapsed in a fit of titters and giggles. 

"What's so funny?" Ash asked with a straight face that made the cat crack up all the more. 

"Unless you missed somthing earlier, junior..." Meowth continued to try to get the words out, but he just couldn't control himself as he erupted into another fit of giggles. This was one of the funniest things he had ever witnessed. 

"...you...you...are...a...ha ha ha...Po...ke...mon!" Meowth tumbled to the cage floor again, overcome with laughter. 

"Piiika Pika!  _Watch it, Meowth. This is one of my friends!"_ Pikachu said as its cheeks sparked in warning. 

"I'm...sorry...sorry...that was just one of the funniest tings I eva heard. He really does think he's Ash Ketchum!" Meowth said, tittering at the end. 

Images of a Pichu being in place of Ash during a Pokemon battle danced in the cat's head. It was ridiculous. 

Pika Cha Pika _and you really think you have a sense of humor..._ " Pikachu said dismissively. 

Meowth covered his face and tried to look hurt. 

"Pika-chu-pi  _anyway, I'm all ears for this plan,"_ Pikachu said while moving his ears to make his point. 

"Chu-u!  _But no double cross!"_ Ash chimed in. 

Meowth sighed. 

"Pikachu, when we get outta here, I tink you need't take your little friend to da Pokemon center to get his head examined..." Meowth said flatly, as if the person he was talking about wasn't in the room. 

"Pika Pi Chu! _Everything's fine. Now, just shut up and tell us what the plan is!"_ Pikachu said as his cheeks started sparking again. The mouse Pokemon was getting agitated. 

* * *

 

As the Pokemon were talking, footsteps approached. 

Butch's face met the cage with the two electric Pokemon. Pikachu growled and its cheeks sparked with electricity. Meowth growled and backed away apprehensively. 

"Well...well..well...if it isn't our two favorite Pokemon!" Cassidy said, with a tone of snark in her voice. 

"You'll be pleased to know that its going to get a whole lot less crowded in here..." Butch said. 

"We phoned the boss, and he's actually interested in most of your Pokemon," Butch said while looking at the cage with the Pichu. 

Meowth listened to the conversation carefully. 

"Especially, you, Pikachu! He's heard so much about you!" Cassidy said in a fake childish voice. Her tone was dripping with sarcasm. 

Pikachu's cheeks sparked again. 

Cassidy opened the cage, and Pikachu made a run for it. 

"Enough of this!" Cassidy announced. 

She threw a familiar Poke Ball in Pikachu's direction. Out popped that same Drowzee! 

"Pika!  _Oh no!"_

"Pichu, Pichu-u!  _Use your electric attacks!"_ Ash said. 

Pikachu turned and faced its opponent, cheeks sparking as it charged for an attack. 

"Pika-CHU!" Pikachu yelled as it discharged fiery flashes of electricity into its foe's direction. 

"Drowzee, use teleport!" Cassidy yelled. 

Right before the sparks hit, Drowzee disappeared. 

"Pika?" Pikachu said as it looked around in confusion. 

"Now, disable!" Cassidy yelled, before the little mouse Pokemon could get its bearings. 

Pikachu was held in a barrier of blue light. It yelled helplessly as it tried to break free. 

"We gotta distract that Drowzee if we want Pikachu to escape..." Meowth said. 

"Pichu?  _But how?"_ Ash asked. 

"How should I know? You're da Pokemon trainer..." Meowth said sarcastically, rolling his eyes at the end. 

Ash watched as Pikachu continued to struggle. 

"Pichu, pichu, chu!  _Pikachu, use agility to break free from Drowzee's disable!"_ Ash yelled. 

The mouse Pokemon caught Drowzee at a moment his guard was down, broke free from the disable attack, and used agility. 

"Drowzee?" the Pokemon said as it looked around, trying to follow Pikachu as it jumped around super fast. It looked like there were thousands of Pikachus. 

The Pokemon's head started spinning, and it started looking dizzy and confused. 

"Pich-Pichu CHU!  _Now, Pikachu, use thunderbolt!"_ Ash yelled as his cheeks sparked. 

Pikachu reared back in a dramatic fashion and yelled "CHU!" 

But nothing happened. 

"Pika?" 

"Drowzee's Disable attack rendered your thunderbolt useless!" Cassidy answered. 

"Pi-pichu?  _they're stronger than I thought_ ," Ash said to himself. 

Meowth sat in his cage, looking thoughtful. 

 _Well, I wonder if they would let me play along for once._ Meowth thought with a sigh. 

"Pikachu, forget da battle. You're not goin ta get anywhere playing fair with dese skies. Run fa da exits instead. Da red button controls da cages. Flip it and let us out!" Meowth said. 

"Pikachu?" Pikachu asked. 

"Don't just stand there, do it!" Meowth said. 

Pikachu hesitated, waiting for a command from Ash. When his trainer said nothing, he bolted to the locked exit door, like Meowth instructed. 

Cassidy saw Pikachu making a bee line for the exits.

"Quick, Drowzee, teleport in front of Pikachu and block it with light screen!" Cassidy said.

Pikachu was suddenly stopped dead in its tracks by an invisible wall. It was knocked back by the force of the collision. 

"Okay, Pika pal, get up, use agility, and get us out!" Meowth said. 

"Oh no your don't! Jumpluf, go!" Butch said as he threw down a Poke Ball. Out came a fluffy plant Pokemon that looked a little bit like the flower of a dandelion. 

Meowth covered his mouth. 

_Oh no! I've been speaking human language this whole time. They know what we're up to!_

The cat Pokemon tried to switch his commands back to Pokemon speech, but it was too late. 

"Pichu, chu!  _that's not fair!"_ Ash growled. 

"Jumpluf, use stun spore!" Butch commanded. 

" _Pikachu, dodge it with agility!"_ Ash shouted. 

"...and as for you two, no more interference! Jumpluf, sleep powder for the Pichu and the Meowth!" 

Ash felt himself unable to stay awake as blue particles descended in his direction. Ash let out a yawn and then a groan as his eyes grew heavy. The last thing he saw was his little buddy struggling to get up. 

* * *

 

Meanwhile, back in the real world, Ash grunted as he struggled in his dream. 

"Pikachu...hang in there..." Ash said weakly. 

"Pika...Pika..." Pikachu said in its sleep. 


	2. Part 2

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> _Oh no. Team Rocket! I should have known better than to trust Meowth._ Ash said to himself

"James, have...you seen Meowth?" Jessie asked weakly in her sleep. 

"He was...here...last...time...I checked," James said in his sleep. 

"Meowth, I'm right...right here...in da science lab..." Meowth said while asleep. 

 

The wild Misdrevious laughed at its prank and put the weary trio into an even deeper sleep. 

 

* * *

 

Meanwhile, back in dream world. 

 

Ash awoke to a much different scene. All of the Pokemon that were captured previously were gone, including Pikachu. 

The little Pichu's cheeks flashed frantically. 

 _"I've gotta find Pikachu!_ " Ash yelled. 

"Dey were all taken away, far far away," Meowth said in a low sad tone. 

Ash turned and noticed what looked like a giant Meowth statue. Meowth was in his cage! The former ten-year-old boy swallowed hard and took a step back. Meowth looked like a big scary giant to him. 

"What's a matter? You look like you seen a ghost Pokemon. I ain't gonna hurt you..." Meowth said, crouching low and letting out a disinterested sigh. 

"Pichu!  _Yeah, right..."_ Ash yelled, his cheeks sparking in warning. 

Meowth, remembering how painful Pikachu's shocks were, retreated to the opposite end of the cage and put his head down. 

"I guess you don't believe me, though? Fine, dat's fair..." Meowth said as he curled himself into a ball. 

"Pichu CHU!  _and stay on your side!"_ Ash yelled. 

"I heard youse da foirst time, kid," Meowth said as he closed his eyes

* * *

"James, do you have any idea where Meowth went?" Jessie asked. 

"Maybe he went to the Poke Mart to grab some cat nip?" James asked. 

"It just doesn't seem like him to stay out this late. It's almost dark, and he hasn't come back. Do you think he got lost?" Jessie asked

"Do you think we should take our chances going to the first floor and find out what happened to him?" James asked. 

"That's exactly what I think we should do," Jessie said. 

"What if they find out we aren't supposed to be here? We didn't pay for this cabin," James said.  

"Whatever. We've been kicked out of better places than this! I'm worried about our little teammate..." Jessie said.  

Jessie and James crept stealthily to the first floor of the cabin and stepped outside. Things were a bit hazier than usual. They wiped their eyes until the scene sort of adjusted. 

"Jessie, does this remind you of the time we thought we were at a beautiful beach resort but we were actually lying on a dirty forest floor being toyed with by ghost Pokemon?" James asked. 

His friend and partner looked around. 

"Not really, why would it?" Jessie asked. 

"I don't know...I," James said, trying to explain himself but coming up short. 

Jessie and James continued to walk into the grassy field. 

"Look. This ground is littered with stun spore," James said, a little unclear on how he knew it was stun spore just by looking at it. It was really too dark to be able to figure that out by sight alone. 

"...and look, there are tire tracks leading down that dirt road..." Jessie said. 

"We should get one of the vehicles and follow them," James said. 

"Good idea, James!" Jessie said as she boarded a nice looking motor scooter with a black R pained on it. Below it in smaller cursive lettering were their names "Jessie and James," painted on it. 

"Where did you get that?" James asked. 

"Don't worry about that, just hop on!" Jessie said.

James reluctantly put on his helmet and climbed aboard. 

The pair went speeding down the dirt and gravel path, James holding on to Jessie tightly. 

"I hope we're going the right way and not just following some blind hunch," James said. 

Suddenly, they caught sight of the beady eyes and yellow fur of something very familiar. 

"It's the twerp's Pikachu!" the two said in unison as they gave chase. 

The little yellow mouse ran ahead of them as fast as it could. 

"Give her some gas, Jess!" James said. 

They revved up the scooter and started going faster and faster. Everything was soon just a blur. 

James looked at the blurry scenery that was mixing together. 

"Jessie, slow down! How are we even going this fast? Isn't this impossible?" James asked, visibly afraid at how unnatural things were beginning to appear. Something was off; he just knew it. 

* * *

 

Meanwhile, back in the real world. The scene looked a lot different. 

Jessie and James were hugging each other close. 

"Jessie, slow down..." James said in his sleep. 

"...but I wanna go faster!" Jessie said in her sleep. 

The wild Misdrevious giggled as she watched the unwitting couple sleep. 

On the floor above, though, things were a little different. 

 

"Will I ever see Pikachu again?" Ash asked in his sleep. 

"Pika!" his friend Pikachu said in, distressed, in his sleep. 

* * *

 In dream world, that translated to...

 _I don't know how I escaped, and normally I wouldn't be very happy to see these two, but...someone has to get us out, and I guess maybe these two are good for something._ Pikachu thought. 

Pikachu, Jessie, and James reached the lab. 

"Come here, Pikachu..." James said sweetly. 

Pikachu jumped into James' waiting arms. 

James smiled and then said, "Wait! Now I know this has to be a dream, there's no way Pikachu would..." 

Pikachu surveyed its surroundings. 

 _How did that happen?_ Pikachu thought. 

As the man was talking, Pikachu discharged enough electricity to char the man's clothes and cause a few injuries. James dropped Pikachu and coughed out a puff of smoke. 

"It seems realistic enough to me..." Jessie said absentmindedly. 

"Pika-chu  _in your dreams!"_ the confused mouse Pokemon shouted, its cheeks sparking in warning. 

James grabbed for it yet again, causing it to discharge even more electricity. The charge hit the motorcycle and made it explode, causing Jessie and James to go flying high into the air. 

"We're blasting off again!" Jessie and James yelled as they held on to each other tightly. 

"Pika-chu!  _Good riddance!"_ Pikachu yelled as it watched them disappear into the sky; it was thoroughly frustrated that it ever trusted them at all. 

* * *

 

Airborne, Team Rocket surveyed their surroundings. 

"Look, there's the lab right there; we're going to hit the roof!" James said. 

"I guess that's one way to get in undetected..." Jessie said. 

"Do you think that Pikachu did this on purpose?" James asked. 

"Who knows?" Jessie said. 

The Rockets positioned themselves to land on the roof. Performing aerial acrobatics, they landed perfectly near a window. 

"That was our best landing yet," James said. 

"...you bet! It was just like a dream!" Jessie said. 

With that, they felt the platform they were on buckle, and they went tumbling to the floor below. 

"Was it something I said?" Jessie asked. 

"That's what I was thinking. Jessie, everything is just too perfect. We have to be dreaming," James said, as he struggled to his feet from the floor. 

"Plus, we fell from a really long way. Had that happened in real life, I wonder if we wouldn't at least have a broken bone or two," Jessie said. 

"...especially since we didn't land on our feet..." James said. 

"...but stranger things have happened..." Jessie said, "and I know we weren't dreaming during our training as field agents..." 

"Good point, so do you think maybe we aren't dreaming, but for some reason, we're just extremely lucky today?" James asked, his eyes hopeful. 

"Could be..." Jessie said. 

Jessie turned around, her eyes meeting a gang of angry looking robots, all with big red R's painted on them. 

"Um, I think maybe we spoke too soon..." Jessie said, while tapping James' shoulder and motioning toward the robots. 

"Don't worry, Jessie, I don't think they saw us," James said. 

Just then, James found himself dodging a laser. 

"You just had to go and open your big mouth, James!" Jessie said. 

Jessie and James were surrounded by fierce attacking robots. There was only one thing to do. The two readied their Poke Balls. 

"Poke Ball, go!" the two said in unison. 

Out popped Arbok and Wheezing! 

"Arbok, when did you come back?" Jessie said with wet teary eyes. 

"Wheezing, didn't I leave you, too?" James asked, genuinely confused. 

"Arbok, acid, aim for the floor!" Jessie commanded. 

The huge cobra Pokemon with flame markings on the inside of its hood did as its master commanded and spewed a jet of super corrosive acid that ate a huge hole in the floor. 

"Now, Wheezing your turn, smoke screen!" James commanded. 

The purple floating mine Pokemon let out a plume of thick black smoke to cover the hole. 

Jessie and James watched as the robots mindlessly walked into the hole and tumbled to their destruction. A huge explosion happened on the floor below them where the robots fell. 

The two shielded their eyes. 

"I hope this doesn't lead to another blast off..." James said. 

"You and me both..." Jessie said. 

Jesse and James waited, half expected for a huge explosion to make them airborne again, but it never happened. 

The two scanned the area. 

"There's an elevator right next to us!"  James pointed out. 

"That's convenient," Jessie said. 

With that, our "heroes" proceeded to the basement floor.  

* * *

 

"I don't get it. Do you think Meowth's even down here?" James asked. 

"It just seems like this is where he would be, for some reason reason," Jessie said. 

Meowth's ears perked up. 

"Jessie! James! I'm over here!" Meowth yelled. 

The little cat Pokemon backed into the corner, his eyes full of fear. 

"Pichu chu! CHU!  _that's it, you asked for it!_   _If you have the nerve to call Team Rocket on us, I have the nerve to shock you!_ " 

Ash shot a stream of electricity toward Meowth, but Meowth dodged it. 

"Hey! What's da big idea? Dese er my friends. Dey were probably worried about me!" Meowth said while glaring at the tiny Pichu. 

"Pichu, chu, chu, chu!  _or maybe you told them there was this cute looking Pokemon they could steal..."_ Ash said, a look of suspicion on his face. 

Meowth clung to the bars for safety. 

"CHU!  _thunderbolt!"_ Ash yelled. 

Luckily for Meowth, the kid was a lot slower than Pikachu. Meowth was able dodge it with ease. 

"Pi-chu chu!  _Stop calling Team Rocket over here!"_ Ash threatened, his cheeks lighting up once again.

Defeated, Meowth gave up. He wanted to see his friends and be rescued, but he couldn't convince the kid to trust him, and he didn't want to be shocked. 

* * *

"Jessie, I think I heard Meowth," James said. 

"I think it came from over here," Jessie said, shining a flashlight in the direction of where she heard the noise. 

The light caught Ash's button-like eyes. He quickly ran to another part of the cage and tried to hide. 

 _Oh no. It's Team Rocket. I know I should have never trusted Meowth!_ Ash said to himself. 

" _you mangy good for nothing excuse for a Pokemon!"_ Ash yelled as sparks flew out of his cheeks. 

Meowth ducked and dodged and impressed himself with how he out maneuvered the kid's moves. 

 _Pikachu makes this look a lot easier._ Ash said to himself. 

"Okay, dat does it! Jessie! James! I'm over here with dis crazy electric Pokemon!" 

"Electric Pokemon?" James asked. 

Jessie waited for the sparks to clear and then shined her flashlight. 

"Meowth! We found you!" Jessie and James said happily. 

"Where's the electric Pokemon?" James asked. 

Meowth pointed to the corner. Jessie shined the flashlight. Her eyes fell on a teeny tiny Pichu. 

"Aww, how cute..." Jessie said. 

"Pichu! Pichu!  _you'll see how cute I am once I charge back up!"_ Ash yelled in warning, his cheeks flashing. 

"It doesn't look very happy to see us," James said. 

"It's not! Now are you two going to ta get me out, or are you just going to stand dere?" Meowth said, frustration apparent in his voice. 

"We're going to get you out, of course!" Jessie said. 

"Den hurry up!" Meowth snapped. 

"Well, that's some way to talk to your rescuers, now isn't it?" James said. 

"Pi-chu!  _stay away!"_ Ash yelled as he shot out more electricity. 

Meowth did a flip and clung to the front of the cage. 

"In case you didn't notice, dis kid's a little trigger happy," Meowth said. 

Jessie looked at the little Pokemon again with stars in her eyes. 

"I bet you're really good at using electric attacks, aren't you, Pichu?" Jessie cooed. 

"Quit antagonizing da kid and get me outta here," Meowth pleaded. 

"Quiet, cat. I think we're also going to take this lovely little Pichu. I think he might make an excellent gift for the boss," Jessie said.

"I tink you'd be mistaken. Shine your flashlight over this control panel on da cage," Meowth said. 

Jessie did so, and she caught sight of a giant red "R" painted on it. 

"That's official Team Rocket property," Jessie said. 

"Those evil naves! They stole from Team Rocket just so they could steal Pokemon!" James said. 

Meowth sighed. 

"I'm kinda wonderin' who stole youse skies brains. D'ose cages belong to Team Rocket, because da Pokemon were stolen by Team Rocket," Meowth said. 

"...a rival team?" Jessie said, suddenly grasping the situation. 

"Yeah, dey phoned da boss, and he took all da Pokemon, except us..." Meowth said. 

"Well, you already belong to Team Rocket. We can't steal from each other. It's against the code of conduct," James said. 

"Didn't keep dis group from trying. Dey even tried to catch me and put me in a Poke Ball!" Meowth said in a whine, with tears in his eyes. 

"Those evil disgusting people..." Jessie said. 

"Pichu chu _look in a mirror lately_? _"_

Meowth turned to Ash and put his claws out. 

"I've had just about enough a you insulting my friends!" Meowth growled. 

"What did he say?" Jessie asked, eyes narrowing on the little Pokemon. 

"He keeps saying you're just as bad as the people who stole us..." Meowth said. 

"Well, he is right, you know..." Jessie said.

"...but that doesn't mean we can't be kind sometimes..." James added.

"Case in point..." Jessie sang as she sprang the cage door. 

Jessie looked at the cage. 

"Meowth, I dare say I think your lock picking has gotten a bit rusty..." James commented. 

"Why do you say dat?" Meowth asked. 

"The code to open this cage was 1-2-3-4..." James announced. 

Meowth did a face palm and fell over in an exaggerated fashion. 

"You mean dis whole time all I needed ta do was enter a code anyone who knows how ta count could a guessed?" Meowth yelled in frustration, while waving his extended claws in the direction of his friends. 

"Yeah..." Jessie said quietly. 

"Meow! Could dis day get any worse?" Meowth said as he fell to floor of his cage and groaned. 

Jessie and James picked him up and set him on the tiled floor. 

Just then, they heard an alarm trigger. 

"Come on, James!" 

"What about the little guy?" James asked, motioning to the cornered Pichu. 

"What about him?" Jessie asked. 

"It looks hurt, Jessie, and this is a Team Rocket base. You know that this is no place for an injured Pokemon," James said. 

"James, you're almost sounding like the twerp..." Jessie remarked. 

"You're on your own, Jimmy, but if you can catch 'em, be my guest!" Meowth said with a smirk and an evil gleam in his eye. 

"Alright, but make it quick. This time we are not going to wait for you, and if you get caught, you'll have to explain yourself to the boss!" Jessie said, her tone was vicious. 

James quickly pulled some rubber gloves out of his pocket. 

"I'll just be a minute," James said. 

* * *

 

"Come on out, I'm not trying to hurt you," James said in a soft voice. 

 _"I'm not fooled by that!_ " Ash growled. The former Pokemon trainer decided to crouch low in the bottom of the cage so that he could land physical attacks more easily. 

Ash saw James reach into his cage with the rubber gloves on. The little Pokemon bared his teeth and growled his name. 

He felt James reaching for him. 

 _"Oh, no you don't!"_ Ash yelled in Pokemon language. Ash snapped at his target but he was somehow too slow. 

Ash felt the heavy gloved hand on his back and tried to whip around to resist it. He managed to wriggle his head free and position himself for a good strong bite.  

"Ouch!" James screamed as Ash's sharp rodent teeth pierced through rubber and into soft flesh. 

The Pichu licked its lips and coughed to get the blood out of its mouth. Then, while James was distracted, Ash made a run for it. 

" _You get it now? I don't want to be your Pokemon!_ " Ash growled defiantly. 

James whimpered and took out a cloth to clean his hand. 

"I'm not letting you get away that easily!" James said as he pulled out a Poke Ball. 

"Go Wheezing!" James yelled as the large poison mine-shaped Pokemon appeared. 

"Tackle that Pichu!" James ordered. 

Ash heard James give the orders and watched quietly from a corner. 

Wheezing just stopped and gave James a confused look before slowly floating away to look for its opponent. 

"Wheezing...wheez  _where you, Pichu?"_  

Ash stayed hidden, hoping he wouldn't be spotted. The Pokemon heard James footsteps and saw Wheezing's shadow. 

"Ha! Now I've got you!" James shouted. 

Ash made a run for it. 

"Wheezing, over here, tackle attack, now!" James said. 

The mine-shaped Pokemon flew over to the Pichu and tried to land a tackle. 

Ash stopped running, charged his cheeks, and got ready to shock his opponent. 

"Pichu, Pi, Pichu!" Ash yelled as his cheeks sparked. The Pichu landed a discharge attack on the big purple floating mine Pokemon. Sparks shot out of the Pichu's direction and hit Wheezing directly. 

"Wheezing...wheez.... _is that all you've got?"_ the mine shaped Pokemon asked. 

To the surprise of James and Ash, it barely took any damage at all from that attack. 

James stood with his mouth open for a few seconds before collecting himself. 

"Pich, chu?  _what? how did?"_ Ash asked in confusion. 

"Wheez-ing  _we'll talk later, maybe?"_

James saw the little Pokemon just standing there and decided to take the chance. 

"Wheezing, tackle attack!"  

Before Ash could figure out what was going on, he was hit and knocked back. 

Ash stood up and tried to collect himself. His cheeks sparked as he charged for another electric attack. 

"Wheezing, quick, smoke screen!" 

The mine shaped Pokemon blew smoke in the direction of its opponent. 

Ash looked around in confusion. Everything was black and blurry. 

"Now, tackle it again!" James commanded. 

Suddenly, the mine Pokemon appeared out of the smoke and rammed into Ash. The Pichu fell back and cried its name sorrowfully. 

Ash struggled to stand, but he was just too weak. The former Pokemon trainer lay on the floor, surprised at how easy it was for a Pokemon to tire itself out. Between firing his own attacks and receiving damage from an opponent, he was left in no shape to battle.

James let out a laugh that sounded maniacal as he eyed his catch and readied a Poke Ball. 

Ash saw what was coming out of the corner of his eye and struggled to dodge it, but it was hopeless. 

The Poke Ball made contact, and Ash panicked as he felt himself being sucked in. His little legs and tail were turning into some kind of red light. It registered that he was being caught but after he was inside of the Poke Ball. 

James watched as the Poke Ball shook once, then twice, then...

Ash struggled against the capture device with all of his remaining strength, but it was like he was stuck inside of a safe. 

 _How do wild Pokemon break out of these things?_ Ash asked himself in frustration. 

The Pokemon trainer concentrated really hard and tried to block out any positive thoughts he had about this situation. 

_I do not want to get caught by you. I want to be free. I want to get out. I want to be free._

Feeling a surge of strength, Ash rammed the wall of the Poke Ball as hard as he could. 

Nothing happened. 

The Poke Ball shook the third time and the glowing light went off. 

James picked up the little Poke Ball excitedly. 

"I caught a Pichu!" James said while jumping up in the air. 

Just then, he heard footsteps. 

"Wheezing, smog attack then poison gas! Let's make a clean getaway!" 

James gracefully exited the building while the people checking the alarm were met with Wheezing's unpleasant toxic fumes. 

* * *

 

Jessie and Meowth were waiting outside, even though they said they weren't going to wait for him. 

The Rocket member walked out of the building with Wheezing trailing behind and held the shrunken Poke Ball up for everyone to see. 

"I caught a new Pokemon!" James said. 

"You didn't! Dat kid's not gonna like you," Meowth said. 

"I'm impressed. That little Pokemon was putting up quite a fight," Jessie said. 

Inside of his prison Ash squirmed and tried to get comfortable. Then, he realized he already was pretty comfortable. 

_So, this is how the inside of a Poke Ball feels?_

It was soft and warm, a lot like getting a hug. It wasn't really uncomfortable, just strange. Ash wasn't technically a body, so he wasn't getting any kind of aches or pains, even though he was in a very small space, and the temperature was evening out to be about neutral. There was a gentle rocking motion from the movement that was going on outside. The movement made him start feeling very sleepy. Ash gave the equivalent of a yawn in his non-physical state and slowly drifted off to sleep, any anger or frustration he felt about the situation was being calmed quickly by the overwhelming comfort of his new home. It was better than a five-star resort.   


End file.
